This is an adaptation of an activity from my book Images. Munch’s Scream became topical in May 2012 when it was sold in auction for $120 million. This puts it in the list of most expensive paintings ever sold. The activity makes use of an entry from Munch’s diary in 1892 (see below). The descriptive passage describes a recurring vision that is said to be the inspiration for the iconic image.
- Language level: Intermediate; Upper Intermediate (B1; B2)
- Learner type: Teens; Adults
- Time: 30 minutes
- Activity: Illustrating a text; Text reconstruction
- Topic: CLIL (Art); Auctions
- Language: Past simple; Past continuous
- Show students the image below and ask the following questions:
- Who do you think these people are?
- Where do you think they are?
- Who do you think they are talking to?
- Tell students that you are going to show them a text which has a connection with the picture. Put students into pairs or small groups and give out copies of the text which is included in the PDF download.
- Ask students to work together to do the following:
- Share and pool knowledge of any unknown words or language.
- Consider where the text came from.
- Consider what the connection between the text and the image is.
- Ask students to read the text again and pay close attention to the images that form in their heads as they do so. Tell students that before you tell them where the text came from, you want them to capture these images on paper.
- Give out blank paper and coloured pencils. Ask students to illustrate the text in any way that they see it.
- Put the drawings up on the walls and turn the classroom into a gallery. Let students compare their artwork.
- Find out if anyone has any more ideas about where the text came from before showing them the second image.
- Ask students what is happening in the picture (answer = an auction). Ask them to guess what is being auctioned (i.e. what is behind the blob).
- Show students the third picture. They will see that the item on sale at the auction is Munch’s Scream.
- Find out what students know about the artist and the painting. You could ask them to go online and find out about any of the following:
I was walking along a path with two friends. The sun was setting. Suddenly the sky turned blood red. I paused, feeling exhausted, and leaned on the fence. There was blood and tongues of fire above the blue-black fjord and the city. My friends walked on, and I stood there trembling with anxiety and I sensed an infinite scream passing through nature.
Note: It is possible that some students will know the connection between the text and the image. This is why they are discussing their ideas in pairs or small groups and not with the whole class. You can circulate and find out if any group knows or has worked out the answer. If this is the case, congratulate them and then ask them to keep it secret from the rest of the class.
(Click on image to enlarge)
(Click on image to enlarge)
Establish that the people in the first picture are taking telephone bids. Also establish that the text comes from an 1892 diary entry from the artist. It describes a recurring vision that was said to haunt him. It was the inspiration for The Scream, his most famous painting. On 2nd May 2012, a version of the painting was sold by auction for $120 million. This put it in the list of most expensive paintings ever sold.
- The artist and his life (here)
- The different versions of the painting and comparisons of them (here)
- The theft of The Scream in 2004 (here and here)
- The sale of the painting on the 2nd May 2012 (here)
- Other works in the list of most expensive paintings ever sold (here)
Note that another piece of art that finds itself on the list of most expensive paintings ever sold is the subject of another Lessonstream activity.
Language study follow up 1
Ask students to examine the text carefully and answer the following questions:
- How many past simple structures can you identify in the text?
- How many past continuous structures can you identify in the text?
Let students compare their answers before feedback.
- The sky turned blood red (1)
- I paused, feeling exhausted and leaned on the fence (2 & 3)
- My friends walked on (4)
- I stood there (5) trembling with anxiety
- I sensed an infinite scream (6) passing through nature
- Also, you may want to include: There was blood and tongues of fire above the fjord and the city (7)
- I was walking along a path with two friends (1)
- The sun was setting (2)
Draw students’ attention to the following structures which are not to be mistaken for past continuous:
- I paused, feeling exhausted
- I stood there trembling with anxiety
- I sensed an infinite scream passing through nature
language study follow up 2
Tell students that you are going to give them a memory test. Give them two or three minutes to read and memorise as much as possible about the text. Tell them to pay attention to order of ideas, key words, grammar, number of sentences, etc.
While they are doing this, write the following on the board:
- Walk (past continuous)
- Set (past continuous)
- Turn (past simple)
- Pause (past simple)
- Lean (past simple)
- There was …
- Walk (past simple)
- Stand (past simple)
- Sense (past simple)
When time is up, ask students to put away their texts and rewrite them from memory. They should attempt to reconstruct the text as accurately as possible. They should make use of the prompts that you have written on the board as they do this. Finally, ask students to compare their work before letting them check it with the original text.